Pakistan: Terrorism charges filed against Imran Khan

Police in Pakistan have charged former Prime Minister Imran Khan under the country's anti-terror laws, after he delivered a speech on Saturday in which Pakistani officials say he threatened police officials and the judiciary.

Hundreds of supporters of former prime minister gathered outside his residence in the capital city Islamabad on Monday vowing to block the former premier's arrest.

Fawad Chaudhry, a senior leader of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI), said "hundreds" of people remained gathered at Khan's residence before dawn on Monday.

Pakistan's leading English language newspaper, Dawn, reported on Monday that PTI leaders had warned against Khan's arrest, saying it would mean crossing a "red line."

Protesters raised slogans against the government of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, while some party leaders urged supporters to prepare for mass mobilization.

"If Imran Khan is arrested… we will take over Islamabad," said Ali Amin Gandapur, a former minister in Khan's cabinet. 

Another former ministerial colleague, Murad Saeed, told domestic television channels that police had issued orders for Khan's arrest, though police were yet to say this. 

Renewed and more serious charges for the former PM

The charges under anti-terrorism laws, which mark an escalation of the ongoing political tug-of-war between the current government and Khan's opposition party, came after Khan delivered a speech on Saturday.

Khan slammed Islamabad's police chief and a female judge for the arrest and alleged torture of a close aide in the speech. Saturday's police report cited Khan as saying that he "would not spare" the police chief and the judge, according to Reuters.

"The purpose of the speech was to spread terror amongst the police and the judiciary and prevent them from doing their duty," police said in the report.

The use of anti-terror laws in the pursuit of political gains is not uncommon in Pakistan, and Khan's government also used them against opponent and critics.

Khan has faced more minor charges since his removal as prime minister, with authorities so far stopping short of seeking to detain him, however. 

Pakistan media banned from airing Khan's speeches on TV

Pakistan's Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on Saturday put a ban on live broadcasts of Khan's speeches by news channels with immediate effect, but made an exception for recorded speech.

In a statement, the Pakistani media regulator accused Khan of "continuously… levelling baseless allegations and spreading hate speech through his provocative statements against state institutions."

It said Khan's speeches were "prejudicial to the maintenance of law and order and likely to disturb public peace and tranquility.

Soon after the ban, Khan's party vowed to go live on "500+ YouTube and Facebook channels."

Khan accuses government of blocking YouTube livestream 

Khan has been calling for fresh elections ever since he was ousted in April after losing a vote of no-confidence.

He has been making fiery speeches across the nation, infuriating the current government with remarks that often take aim at them.

Khan tends to blame security forces, the influential army, and the US for his removal from office, claiming they collaborated to remove him. Even though Khan and the military deny falling out, it is widely acknowledged that Khan both came to power with the support of Pakistan's military and lost out on power after losing the military's support.

Khan also accused the government of temporarily blocking his speech on YouTube on Sunday, saying that an "imported government blocked YouTube midway through my speech."

rm/msh (Reuters, AP)